6.5 GETTIER PROBLEMS
Another challenge to the fallibilist position is Gettier problems, named after Edmund Gettier, the American philosopher who first presented this concept.
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Suppose you wake up and want to know what time it is. You look at the clock on your nightstand, it says 12:15. It’s a very reliable and accurate clock, so you trust what it says. You go to the living room and turn on the television to watch the news. At the bottom of the screen is a ticker that shows the time is 12:15pm. You now have knowledge that the time is 12:15 and that knowledge is justified by the reliability of the clock and corroboration from the TV. This would meet fallibilism’s requirements for knowledge.
HOWEVER, unbeknownst to you, the clock on your nightstand coincidentally broke at exactly 12:15am the night before while you were sleeping. So, while the knowledge that it is 12:15 is true and seems justified, it in fact is NOT justified. Even though the clock is considered 99% reliable, the 1% occurred and the clock broke. “A broken clock is right twice a day” says an old idiom. But no one would trust a broken clock to give the correct time as it can only be correct by coincidence.
Another example. Your birthday is coming up, but your spouse has been acting very secretive, whispering and leaving the room when taking phone calls, and leaving the house without warning or explanation several times. One could assume that the spouse is planning a surprise birthday party. On your birthday, your spouse and friends spring a surprise party on you. So, you were right! Your spouse WAS planning a surprise party for you! You knew it, right?
It turns out that while your spouse WAS planning a surprise birthday party for you, they actually have an illegal side-hustle. The secretive behavior you witnessed was not for your party but actually for his illicit dealings. While the knowledge was true, once again it seemed justified but in reality it was not.
